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"A gourmet who thinks of calories is like a tart who looks at her watch." - James Beard

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Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Tart of the Month - Clafoutis

I have wanted to make clafoutis for a very long time. It was one of the reasons I started "Tart of the Month". Little did I realize at the time that this French dessert isn't technically a tart at all! It is more like a custard cake. Fresh cherries (or other fruit) are covered in a custardy batter and baked. It can be baked in a pie or tart pan, a casserole dish or even a cast iron pan.

Here's what you need for this delicious treat. The recipe makes enough to serve 6-8.3 cups cherries, pitted1/3 cup sugar

Either way, wear an apron and cover your work area to keep from squirting cherry juice everywhere.

Once the cherries are all pitted, place them in a buttered pie plate other vessel. Sprinkle them with 1/3 cup of sugar.

Combine the milk, remaining 1/3 cup sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt and whisk together. Slowly add the flour whisking to get the lumps out. My batter is a little lumpy. You can also do this in a blender to get it nice and smooth.

Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour until the top is puffed and browned and the custard is set. If it cracks, that's no problem. Powdered sugar to the rescue!

Sprinkle the top with powdered sugar. I just tap it through a fine mesh strainer to make a fine powdery coating.

When you serve the clafoutis, you can cut it into neat wedges or just scoop it out for a more "rustic" presentation. Pitting the cherries takes some effort but otherwise this is a simple, delicious dessert for summertime.